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Re: gEDA-user: Comments on pcb's g-code exporter & HeeksCAD/HeeksCNC FOSS program for pcb milling



Markus,

I have figured out how to add your 24 patches with git, I recompiled 'pcb', and I am trying out the new version.

The grouping of the drill operation for different drill sizes is great. Adding a tool table might be cool. There could be a field in the Preferences window, where the user enters the path to their tool table. That way tool change g-code (M06) could be easily added, with a set of Tool Function (T) numbers and bit diameters that match the designer's machine. I would again suggest copying emc2's .tbl file format in case you or another 'pcb' programmer might want to create a window where people can read, edit, and write their emc2 tool table directly from 'pcb'. If someone is using another nc program, the 'pcb' tool table just gets stored in the emc2 format.

Here is a sample of the sim.tlb file when emc2 is first installed:

...
T1 P1 D0.125000 Z+0.511000 ;1/8 end mill
T2 P2 D0.062500 Z+0.100000 ;1/16 end mill
T3 P3 D0.201000 Z+1.273000 ;#7 tap drill
T99999 P99999 Z+0.100000 ;big tool number
...


In regards to cutting the board outline:

What I am noticing is that the global board dimensions set in Preferences get turned into a xxx-outline.cnc file. Correct?

I think there should be an "outline" layer in the main window (along with the "solder", "component", and other layers in 'pcb') where you can draw your outline with a trace line. This way the pcb designer can create complex or odd shaped board outlines; or, they can add breaks in the outline traces, which will end up as tabs that get easily cut and filed smooth when the board is done. They can also deal with offsetting by first setting the trace line to the width of their milling bit and then drawing the line so that its edge just touches their ground plane rectangle, for example.

Also, a box to input the feed rate (F) would be nice.

Thanks for the great work!

Dave

On 11/12/2010 03:15 AM, Markus Hitter wrote:

Am 12.11.2010 um 01:58 schrieb dfro@xxxxxxxxx:

Markus,

That is good news.

Could someone tell be how to add these files to the current
pcb-20100929 source download and recompile?

Use

git am < 00xxx.patch

Recompilation is done as before, not even a configure run is needed.


On page 1 of the LPKF brochure
(http://www.lpkfusa.com/datasheets/prototyping/rp_brochure.pdf ), it
shows a screenshot of their pcb artwork software. The thick grey
traces are used to route the border of the part. I noticed the breaks
in the trace in order to create attachment tabs, which you can see in
the picture to the right of the mill making some boards.

You could have a field in the g-code export window where you can
choose a layer from pcb, which contains the traces for the border
routing operation. The user can customize with a simple series of
thick (or thin) traces exactly what shape they want the pcb border to
be, i.e. with or without tabs, what diameter endmill to use, etc.

This layer is there already, it's the one named "outline", all lower
case. What isn't there is code to calculate the offset of the lines and
polygons on this layer, as I couldn't find existing functions in the
remaining pcb source code and I lack the resources to write it myself.

So, feel free to add this. The 0023 patch roughly shows a good place to
start.


Markus

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Dipl. Ing. (FH) Markus Hitter
http://www.jump-ing.de/







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